


Searching for him

by Perspicacia



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, Star Wars: Rebels, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Cody's journey from Revenge of the Sith to a New Hope, Fix-It, M/M, With Cameos from favorite Rebels...
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-04
Updated: 2017-05-04
Packaged: 2018-10-24 17:22:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,771
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10746336
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Perspicacia/pseuds/Perspicacia
Summary: One minute, Cody’s cataloguing the flash grenades stock, the minute after, he’ asking himself why the kriff he is on the floor, and why are his hands shaking so much?And why, why is he crying?





	Searching for him

**Author's Note:**

  * For [armsofthestorm](https://archiveofourown.org/users/armsofthestorm/gifts).



> The most awesome beta in the world is aeremaee, let it be known!

It happens on a small world in the Outer Rim. Somewhere totally uninteresting: here, you can find three landmasses, varied climates, two small moons, a lot of farmers and the principal exportation is a delicacy made with the blood of a local gastropod. The Empire only came to that world because it wants to seize everything, everyone, everywhere in its gasp, certainly not for the importance of the population or the industry.

So, **_it_** happens on that world. It comes quietly. No wound to the head, no headache as a warning sign, no nausea or strange virus, not even unknown radiation that could explain it.

One morning, Cody’s chip just stop working.

Like that, it just dies in his head, or dissolves or whatever evil little things destroying the life of good men do when they stop functioning. One minute he’s cataloguing the flash grenades stock, the minute after he’ asking himself why the kriff he is on the floor, and why his hands are shaking so much?

And why, why is he crying?

He’s only saved by the sentiment of superiority that new imperial officers have for the clones. He would be executed without question if he was found this way. Since the day CC-5052 remembered he used to be Bly, and took an entire Star Destroyer with him in death in revenge for General Secura, the clones have always been suspect. So, Cody would be executed if seen like that, but he isn’t. That day, he’s almost alone in the base. There is a parade and as the only clone on the planet, he isn’t on it. While the Stormtroopers are marching in the boulevards of the capital, officially getting rewarded for stopping terrorists but more likely terrorizing the population a little more after crushing a peaceful manifestation by poor souls with more idealism than prudence, he’s supposed to stay out of view and accomplish tasks that a green soldier of three days could do.

So, when most of the other soldiers are still out, he sabotages all the ships minus one, destroys a new shipment of helmets, wrecks the control tower after stunning the guards, steals all the credits in the safe from the Base’s commander, slices in the computers to steal all data that seems interesting from a tactical point of view, destroys the chemical weapons, rigs the door of the armoury to explode next time someone opens it, and then disappears with the last ship.

He’s free from the chip but certainly not ready to go quietly into hiding for the rest of his life. Since the chip stopped whispering _good soldiers follow orders_ in his mind, his brain is haunted by the image of a body, cloaked in brown, falling from a cliff…

Cody is free from the brainwashing, but not from the guilt that assaulted him the second the chip went dysfunctional.

Obi-Wan Kenobi is still on the list of the Most Wanted Criminals, so Cody doesn’t take the route his brother Bly took: maximum damage to the Empire in vengeance and a fiery death.

His General is not the type to go down quietly, so he isn’t dead in a ditch somewhere; half a planet would be on fire and the world would know if Obi-Wan Kenobi was dead.

Cody does the only thing he can: he starts searching.

Well, first, he uses the credits he stole to lose his scar in a discreet medical office, bleach his hair and buy a set of Mandalorian’s armour. Rusty and very much a copy, but that will do for a start.

On Coruscant, in the under-lever, he sells the ship he stole from the base on the day of his re-birth and goes to the Temple, hoping for clues, and also fearing a lack of clues because it’s been years: if there was a trail, the Inquisitors would have found it.

Nothing. Of course, nothing.

How do you find on the run Jedi?

The Rebellion?

So, how do you find the rebellion when you’re a clone, and suspect? Cody buys false identification, and then passage on a commercial ship to search the stars.

He helps three Wookies escape execution on Kaal, but they know nothing. Or don’t trust him and how could he be angered by that?

He destroys a shipment of weapons on the orbit of Bothawui, steals a Moff’s secrets on Naboo and dumps them on the holonet, hoping the rebels will see them.

In the Outer Rim, from planet to planet, from month to month, and then from year to year, he steals, spies, and destroys. Sometimes he kills, too dangerous officers or Stormtroopers he couldn’t escape, but most of time he saves lives. Poor souls that were at the wrong place at the wrong time, sometimes small criminals, political opponents… Once even the lover of a Moff, whom said Moff would make disappear because in the Empire there is no place for officers dating outside of their species.

Cody was a good soldier. He’s an excellent thorn in the side of the Empire but he’s smart enough to understand one man, no matter how good, is not enough if all the strength of the Empire comes onto him.

He hides, buys a lot of identifications with credits stolen from the Empire, and starts signing his exploits, creating four personas, all responsible for a part of his deeds. Every few months, he dumps one, in a fiery explosion, and creates another. If they died and he starts anew, he hopes no competent officers would be sent from the Core to hunt him.

Still, he’s no closer to finding his General and one day, he’s isn’t quick enough. He goes down, five Stormtroopers dead, two more terribly hurt, but his ankle won’t take him farther and he’s bleeding form the shoulder, the head and the side.

His luck was bound to run out someday and that night, awaiting his execution in small cell, he feels every fight weighing down his bones. Perhaps, if there is something after, he will have a chance to see Obi-Wan again?

Once, just once. He even will refrain from telling his secret, the three little words he wanted to say so much before Order 66, and had sworn to himself he would say after Grievous. Yes, he will take those words and bury them in his soul, just for a chance to see his General again. Twenty years. Fourteen serving the Empire and six on the run, and the secret of his heart is still burning fiercely, a fire in his soul.

Obi-Wan…

And then Cody hears the tell-tale hiss, a sound that he would recognize deaf. A lightsaber. A Force user. His heart is pounding so much it’s a miracle it isn’t heard from here to the Empire Centre, when he sees the lock starting to glow and then melt. By the Force, by all the Stars, please, _please_ …

It isn’t Obi-wan.

Cody’s so disappointed he could weep, so disappointed he need a few seconds to…

“Commander Tano!” She’s taller than him, smiling with all her fangs bared. She also has the nastiest of burns covering half her face, and an eye milky in that way that denounces it doesn’t see anymore.

“What happened…”

“A Sith Temple tried to chew me up. Come, quickly.”

She guides him, bearing half his weight, through the sleeping base, through small streets and then to a ship.

Rex. Rex is there and Cody falls into his brother’s arms. They’re laughing, crying and it’s so good, almost as good as seeing Obi-Wan again would be. Ahsoka goes to help the pilot take off, letting them have this moment with tact, and the brothers stay alone, speaking at the same time, trying to tell each other everything, hugging every ten seconds.

Rex is with the Rebellion, swears he will vouch for him, explains that they started tracking him a year ago but couldn’t find him, and how is Cody so good at covering his tracks? He starts bandaging Cody’s wounds, gives him water and bread, and Cody devours it as if it were the tastiest of meats. They don’t hear the door opening again, too busy with each other.

“Rex, we have a problem.” It’s a Twi’lek woman, green skin, intelligent eyes, with pilot googles.

“I’ve just received a communication. A scattering order,” the woman continues, Ashoka entering the room behind her.

“What does that mean?” Cody asks, feeling Rex tense beside him.

“The main base is under attack. All teams on mission are supposed to abandon them and run,” the woman explains, her face tight.

“Kriff, no,” Rex swears.

They vote. Even he has a vote, the guy that they only found fifty minutes ago.

All votes are for coming to the main base’s aid, desperate odds or not.

“It’s not even sentimentalism,” Ahsoka remarks. “The Rebel Alliance wouldn’t survive it, if Yavin burns.”

They’re still too late. History already has happened. The Death Star is no more, half the Alliance pilots are dead and almost all the survivors are drunk when they arrive on Yavin.

General Syndulla claps Cody on the shoulder. In the few hours of travel, he learnt enough about her to know she’s an officer he would be happy to follow, if the Alliance accepts him.

“I will try to find an officer not drunk. Can you bunk with Rex tonight? We’re probably moving the base; your debrief will have to wait.”

“Yes, sir,”is the answer, a little on automatic.

He searched for the Alliance for so long and is half convinced he’s dreaming. Ahsoka and Rex are hugging a tall man wearing a helmet painted with the jaig eyes, and Cody doesn’t know what he’s supposed to do.

“Cody?? Cody, Force, is that you?”

He almost doesn’t turn. It’s too much, it’s not possible, he has already found the Alliance that day, he’s dreaming, he’s sure of it.

In the end, he still turns. He can’t resist that voice.

Obi-Wan has grown old. Still wears a hooded cape. Is being followed around by a pilot dressed in orange like a duckling.

The world fades, the hangar and all the people in it disappear when their hands touch. Cody can’t find his breath to say a word. He doesn’t need to. Slowly, very slowly, Obi-Wan touches his face, his gesture tender, curious, caressing the place where the scar used to be.

Cody’s hands find his white hair, his neck and slowly, as inexorably as an orbit, they come together and for the first time, without another word, their mouths find each other and Cody and Obi-Wan kiss.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> I confess, for half a second, I wanted to respect canon for Obi-Wan’s death, but that would have been evil for Cody to find the Rebellion just after and learn of it!


End file.
